Fred Rogers could tackle any topic brilliantly. I’m sure, unlike me, he wouldn’t have had any trouble coming up with a thoughtful newsletter greeting month after month. There is no doubt that each of his newsletters would have been meaningful and inspirational.
I started thinking about where Fred may have found inspiration. Who helped stir and provoke his thoughts? One person who comes to...

I recently talked with a teacher who was excited about a new learning center that she set up for the children. She called it the “Creation Station” and stocked it with donations from families of recyclable “stuff,” like boxes, egg cartons, packing material, plastic containers, and paper towel tubes. With the addition of things like tape and markers, all the...

As with most people and organizations, January starts with a flurry of activities as we strive to achieve our resolutions for the New Year. At the Center, our work has primarily focused on professional development and academics. This year we will begin to take steps to reaching an important audience directly, families.
When Fred Rogers founded his production company, he named it Family...

This newsletter is going out on Friday the 13th, a date that somehow became known as an “unlucky” day. But in our Neighborhood, it was always a “lucky” day…a “happy” day…because it was the day we celebrated the birthday of the puppet King Friday XIII! Fred always focused on the positives, and it was important to him to counter the negative...

I received a holiday card the other day that said “From our family to yours, we wish you … joy!” At first I was taken by the image on the card which was very funny; the person who created the card is a brilliant artist. But then I was struck by “we wish you joy.” That small three letter word conveys...

With the approaching holidays, I’ve been thinking about some of the gifts that Fred has given us over the years. His messages were about things that were important to young children, but they were also important to Fred personally -- appreciating others, connecting with family and friends, and enjoying music. And I remembered a Neighborhood program when those messages came...

The roots of Thanksgiving are based on the celebration of a bountiful harvest. Although most families don’t farm anymore, they do harvest -- figuratively. We do our best to nourish and care for our children. We worry about them, rejoice in their achievements, and with a little bit of luck, our children become confident, competent, and caring human beings. I...

I think we’d all agree that being helpful is one of the social skills that we want to support in young children. But we don’t always get the response we want when we ask, “Will you help me?” I recently learned there’s a better way to phrase that request. A University of California, San Diego researcher reported in a 2014 Journal of...

I can hardly believe it myself, but October marks my 50th year working with Fred Rogers and his company! Since this newsletter is about “What we can continue to learn from Fred,” I’ve been thinking about some things I’ve learned from him. And I wanted to share with you one of the most important things he taught me – and...

Welcome back to the Fred Rogers Center Newsletter as we return from our summer hiatus. Over the past two weeks the Center has been abuzz, welcoming more than 100 students for course work, research, and scholarship opportunities.
It was a busy summer with many opportunities to connect with providers and policy makers. Dr. Junlei Li provided the plenary speech at the 2016...

ABOUT US

The legacy of Fred Rogers guides everything we do. From the beautiful simplicity of modeling nurturing interactions with young children to the thoughtful use of educational technology, we learn from Fred's timeless wisdom and approach.